Integrated Off-Pump System for Bypass Surgery

A new off-pump system designed for use in beating heart bypass procedures allows surgeons to bypass clogged arteries without stopping the patient's heart and re-directing blood flow through a heart-lung machine.

This Axius Off-Pump System comprises a mounting mechanism to held system components in place during the procedure, a stabilization platform that steadies areas of the beating heart requiring bypass grafts, and a device that can lift the heart from the patient's chest and provide access to all areas, including vessels on the back of the heart.
The system gives doctors a way to access and stabilize all areas of the heart and reduce hemodynamic compromise. Doctors have a choice of a vacuum or a mechanical stabilizer. An interlocking link design provides the flexibility needed to maneuver and position the system while allowing the stability required to perform the procedure. The system was developed by Guidant Corp's Cardiac Surgery Group (Cupertino, CA, USA).

"By providing physicians with a reliable and reproducible method of performing coronary artery bypass surgery on a beating heart, we are able to treat a greater number of patients with this minimally invasive therapy,” said Joseph F. Sabik, III, M.D., of the Cleveland Clinic (OH, USA). Dr. Sabik performed the first procedure using the Axius Off-Pump System at the Cardiothoracic Techniques and Technologies meeting in New Orleans (LA, USA).



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